In May 2016, my husband and I visited Le Puy du Fou (click left to go to the English website), the theme park in the Vendée region of France, which in recent years has been voted as the best theme park in the world. The park has no rides, only a variety of historical re-enactments, all based on various periods of French history, and specifically focused on the Vendée region. The shows are terrific, but if you go and don't speak French, be sure to ask for headphones to listen in English so that you can fully benefit from the "spectacles."
The grounds of the park are magnificent, left in their naturally wooded state and enhanced by beautiful landscaping. It makes you feel like you are walking through a medieval forest, and not in an asphalt jungle. Furthermore, De Villiers simply bought property for the theme park that included its own castle, medieval village, and 18th century village. No need to reproduce anything when you already have the real thing!
Of course, we particularly enjoyed the Joan of Arc show (Le Secret de la Lance), which literally translated is "The Secret of the Lance." Hmmm, good name for a novel! We also loved the bird show (Le Bal des Oiseaux Fantômes), the breathtaking Roman Coliseum show (Le Signe de Triomphe), where eight lions are loosed on the Vendéen opponents of Rome, and Le Dernier Panache, a visually spectacular recounting of one of the tragic episodes in Vendéen history when 300,000 opponents of the French revolutionaries during the Reign of Terror were slaughtered.
We missed the world-famous Cinéscénie, which only plays in high season. It is considered to be the largest live night-time show in the world and features 1200 volunteer actors on a stage spread out over 23 hectares, 24,000 costumes, 3D video projections, multiple backdrops, and fireworks. It lasts 1 hour 40 minutes. We'll have to go back one year in the summer to see this extravaganza. This show is not included in the regular park entrance fee, and must be booked separately. It books up far in advance, so you must plan and reserve tickets if you are interested.
We stayed in one of the park hotels, Les Iles Clovis, delightful little thatched-roof cottages sitting over water. Remember Clovis? He was the first Christian king of France and was baptized in Reims with oil from the Sainte Ampoule. His baptism and coronation in Reims was the motivator for Joan of Arc to get the Dauphin Charles to Reims for his own coronation. It was fitting to stay there, and the cottages were delightful. If you go off-season, you can stay in one of the park hotels for nearly half the price of high-season. The other park hotels are: The Gallo Roman Villa, Le Camp du Drap d'Or (The Field of the Cloth of Gold, which is spectacular just to see) and Le Logis de Lescure. The hotels, which have free parking, are all within walking-distance to the back entrance to the park. We found the best hotel dining to be the buffet at Les Iles Clovis, called Le Banquet de Mérovée .
Check out the slide show of my photos from our visit:
The grounds of the park are magnificent, left in their naturally wooded state and enhanced by beautiful landscaping. It makes you feel like you are walking through a medieval forest, and not in an asphalt jungle. Furthermore, De Villiers simply bought property for the theme park that included its own castle, medieval village, and 18th century village. No need to reproduce anything when you already have the real thing!
Of course, we particularly enjoyed the Joan of Arc show (Le Secret de la Lance), which literally translated is "The Secret of the Lance." Hmmm, good name for a novel! We also loved the bird show (Le Bal des Oiseaux Fantômes), the breathtaking Roman Coliseum show (Le Signe de Triomphe), where eight lions are loosed on the Vendéen opponents of Rome, and Le Dernier Panache, a visually spectacular recounting of one of the tragic episodes in Vendéen history when 300,000 opponents of the French revolutionaries during the Reign of Terror were slaughtered.
We missed the world-famous Cinéscénie, which only plays in high season. It is considered to be the largest live night-time show in the world and features 1200 volunteer actors on a stage spread out over 23 hectares, 24,000 costumes, 3D video projections, multiple backdrops, and fireworks. It lasts 1 hour 40 minutes. We'll have to go back one year in the summer to see this extravaganza. This show is not included in the regular park entrance fee, and must be booked separately. It books up far in advance, so you must plan and reserve tickets if you are interested.
We stayed in one of the park hotels, Les Iles Clovis, delightful little thatched-roof cottages sitting over water. Remember Clovis? He was the first Christian king of France and was baptized in Reims with oil from the Sainte Ampoule. His baptism and coronation in Reims was the motivator for Joan of Arc to get the Dauphin Charles to Reims for his own coronation. It was fitting to stay there, and the cottages were delightful. If you go off-season, you can stay in one of the park hotels for nearly half the price of high-season. The other park hotels are: The Gallo Roman Villa, Le Camp du Drap d'Or (The Field of the Cloth of Gold, which is spectacular just to see) and Le Logis de Lescure. The hotels, which have free parking, are all within walking-distance to the back entrance to the park. We found the best hotel dining to be the buffet at Les Iles Clovis, called Le Banquet de Mérovée .
Check out the slide show of my photos from our visit:
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